Isaac Hayes III Says Streamers Like Kai Cenat, Khaby Lame Are the New Networks
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As streaming stars like Kai Cenat, Khaby Lame, Druski, and Jackie Aina continue to dominate the digital content space, entrepreneur and tech founder Isaac Hayes III is calling on them—and the next wave of creators, to think bigger. Much bigger.
According to Hayes, the founder of the content monetization platform Fanbase, today’s content creators are not just influencers. They’re the new-age equivalents of MTV and BET. And with millions in earnings through brand partnerships, endorsements, and streaming deals, he believes they should start operating as full-fledged media networks.
“Consider yourself a television network,” Hayes said on the July 1 episode of the Black Tech Green Money podcast. “The big difference between someone like Kai Cenat and a legacy media platform is that he’s doing it inside a community infrastructure like Twitch.”
Fanbase, Hayes’ brainchild, offers creators an alternative to the traditional route of chasing views and subscribers on platforms that delay monetization. According to Hayes, it often takes creators about six months to make their first dollar on platforms like YouTube or TikTok. Fanbase claims to cut that time down to minutes.
“We have people earning a dollar in minutes the day they sign up,” Hayes explained. “And it’s not even through subscriptions. It’s people tipping them—for something said in an audio room, a comment on a post, or even a message in a DM.”
The Atlanta-based startup is gaining momentum. Hayes revealed that Fanbase is nearing $13 million in its latest funding round, bringing its total equity crowdfunding haul to $27 million—a record, he says, for a Black tech founder.
“We’ve made history, and I want to continue to make history,” Hayes said. “I want to continue to be disruptive.”
As audiences increasingly shift away from traditional television in favor of personalized content on smartphones and gaming consoles, Hayes believes creators who understand their power and monetize accordingly will define the future of entertainment.
